SAHS REVIEW

CONTENTS - 2009

VOLUME 45

ISSUE 1 (February)

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Burkhard, Marianne, "Ferdinand Sperl 1918-2006: The International Life of a Swiss Hotelkeeper."

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Feb2009, Vol. 45 Issue 1, p3-29. 

[Article]

Abstract: The article recounts the life of Swiss-American hotelier Ferdinand Sperl, the greater part of it through excerpts from Sperl's memoirs. Topics discussed include Sperl's childhood and education in Switzerland, his family's move to the United States in 1939, his service as a U.S. military intelligence officer during World War II, and his postwar career in hotel management and real estate brokerage in Illinois.

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Holliday, Claudette, "The Purysburg Colonists of South Carolina and Their Descendants."

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Feb2009, Vol. 45 Issue 1, p30-50. 

[Article]

Abstract: The article discusses the history of the de Pury family of Switzerland, and their settlement in the now-defunct town of Purysburg, South Carolina in the 18th century. The basis for the article is a trip taken by a group of de Pury descendants, including the author, to Switzerland in 2006. Topics discussed include: Swiss history from the 13th century onward; the history of Geneva, Switzerland; the legacy of Swiss Reformation leader John Calvin; the Swiss town of Neuchâtel, seat of the de Pury family; and others.

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Geiser, John, III, "Burials in the Tomb of the Swiss-American Society of New Orleans."

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Feb2009, Vol. 45 Issue 1, p51-58. 

[Article]

Abstract: The article describes the tomb of the Swiss-American Society of New Orleans (Lousiana) and lists the names and biographical information of the people buried there from 1883 to 1958.

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Leo Schelpert, Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.

[Book Review by Christian Nøkkentved]
Swiss American Historical Society Review. Feb2009, Vol. 45 Issue 1, p59-63. 

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Schupbach, Rosa: "My Trip to Helvetia, West Virginia."

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Feb2009, Vol. 45 Issue 1, p64-65. 

[Travel Report]

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"Forty-Fifth SAHS Annual Meeting."

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Feb2009, Vol. 45 Issue 1, p66-93. [Minutes and Reports]

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ISSUE 2 (June)

SPECIAL ISSUE: Heinrich Handschin

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Burkhard, Marianne, "A Weaver in Moscow - A Benefactor in Basel-Land Heinrich Handschin (1830-1894)."

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Jun2009, Vol. 45 Issue 2, p3-7. 

[Introduction]

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Fünfschilling, Hans, "Foreword."

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Jun2009, Vol. 45 Issue 2, p8. 

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Haener, Ruth, "Preface."

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Jun2009, Vol. 45 Issue 2, p9. 

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Heinrich Handschin

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Jun2009, Vol. 45 Issue 2, p9-47. 

   Childhood Places

   A Man Want to Climb Up

   Finally Independent

   Things are Looking Up

   Relief

   Retirement to Private Life

   Heinrich Handschin's Death

   His Last Will

   Heinrich Wiesner

   Wilhelm Mohler 

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Heinrich Handschin Foundation

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Jun2009, Vol. 45 Issue 2, p48-66. 

   Liquidation

   Organization of the Foundation

   Franz Hasenböhler   

   Executive Order of 1993

   Members of the Board

   Foundation Revenues and Their Uses

   Financial Statement for 1992

   Sources

   Secondary Studies

   Picture Credits

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ISSUE 3 (November)

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De Graffenried, Christine, "Foreword."

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Nov2009, Vol. 45 Issue 3, p3-6. 

[Article]

Abstract: The article discusses the history of New Bern, North Carolina, beginning with its founding by Swiss colonist Christopher de Graffenried in 1710. The city reestablished ties with Bern, Switzerland, the Swiss capital, throughout the 19th century as Mother and Daughter cities. The author discusses efforts taken in modern times to connect with Bern. Various descendants of de Graffenried currently reside in the U.S., with their numbers outweighing their Swiss descendants. Celebrations for New Bern's tercentennial are discussed, along with the city's relationship with the Swiss American Historical Society (SAHS).

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Schelbert, Leo, "The Enmeshment of Five Worlds, 1710 - 1713: The Making of New Bern in Southern Iroquoia."

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Nov2009, Vol. 45 Issue 3, p8-56. 

[Article]

Abstract: The article discusses the settling of New Bern, North Carolina by colonists from the Swiss canton of Bern and the German Palatinate. The dangerous voyage from Bern, Switzerland to the American coast is discussed, including death from disease and French pirate raids. Emphasis is placed upon the social conditions of Bern in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, the presence of South Germans on the expedition, and encounters between the colonists and Native Americans. Uprisings of the Tuscarora tribe of Native Americans threatened New Bern.

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Hill, Michael; Wegner, Ansley, "Facets of the History of New Bern."

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Nov2009, Vol. 45 Issue 3, p57-68. 

[Article]

Abstract: The article discusses the role of New Bern, North Carolina in the development of both North Carolina and the U.S. The experiences of the Native American Tuscarora tribe with both other groups of Native Americans and European settlers are discussed. Swiss and German immigrants settled the area around New Bern in 1710, where they faced hardship springing from natural disasters, hunger, and the Tuscarora War. Emphasis is placed on New Bern's place in North Carolina history, including its time as the first state capital, its role in the AmericanRevolutionary War, and its economic and industrial importance both in the past and modern times.

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De Graffenried, Christine, "Reciprocal Visits Bern -- New Bern: An Overview."

Swiss American Historical Society Review.  Nov2009, Vol. 45 Issue 3, p69-75. 

[Article]

Abstract: The article provides a time line of reciprocal visits of both Swiss and U.S. citizens to the cities of Bern, Switzerland and New Bern, North Carolina. The time line begins in 1891 with the visit of New Bern Mayor Captain Mattias E. Manly to Bern. The various mayors of the two cities have exchanged letters over time. Bern Mayor Dr. Klaus Baumgartner visited New Bern in 1996 for the New Bern Daughter City Centennial. Members of the Graffenried family, descendants of New Bern's founder, have repeatedly visited New Bern.

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"Business Contract of Ritter & Cie. as to the Founding of a Colony."

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Nov2009, Vol. 45 Issue 3, p76-79. 

[Primary Document]

Abstract: The article presents a historic contract pertaining to the founding of a Swiss and Palatinate colony in North Carolina in May of 1710. The writers of the contract obtained a land concession from the Queen of Great Britain in order to establish their colony. The contract outlines economic and governmental guidelines for the colony, including the setting aside of money for mining and trade and the election of colony directors. Emphasis is given to the ownership of mines, the dispersal of land, and the funding of the colony.

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"List of Bernese Emigrants Arriving in September 1710 from London in New Bern."

Source:

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Nov2009, Vol. 45 Issue 3, p80-81. 

[Chart]

Abstract: The article presents a chart listing the names of Swiss emigrants from London, England who arrived in New Bern, North Carolina in September 1710, adapted from the book Even More Palatine Families, Volume Two, by Lewis Bunker Rohrbach.

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Egger, Hans Rüegs; Gabley, Jacob; Währen, Jacob; Zant, Anna Eva, Götschi, Johann Jacob; Ziorjen, Bendicht; Ziorjen, Michael, Von Mülinen, Salomé; Engel, Christen and Jantz, Christen, "Letters of Swiss Immigrants from New Bern, 1710-1711."

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Nov2009, Vol. 45 Issue 3, p82-98. 

[Letters]

Abstract: Multiple letters are presented from Swiss immigrants living in New Bern, North Carolina to family members living in Europe discussing the hardships of colonial life.

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"SAHS Books."​

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Nov2009, Vol. 45 Issue 3, p99-101. 3p.

[Bibliography]

Abstract: A bibliography on the subject of Swiss Americans is presented which includes the book Prominent Americans of Swiss Origins, The Swiss in the United States, edited by John Paul von Grüningen, and "The Swiss Record. Yearbook of the Swiss-American Historical Society," edited by Alfred Senn.

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"End Matter: The Swiss American Historical Society."

Swiss American Historical Society Review. Nov2009, Vol. 45 Issue 3, p102-103.

[Society Retrospective]

Abstract: The article presents a retrospective discussion of the Swiss American Historical Society, which was formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1927. Although close to dissolution in 1962, the society was reactivated due to the efforts of Lukas F. Burckhardt, cultural counselor to the Embassy of Switzerland in Washington D.C. The society's newsletter eventually transformed into a professional journal. The society has published books dealing with the genealogies, memoirs, and biographies of Swiss Americans, along with stories of Swiss settlements.

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